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Saudi Arabia March 20th. Be there if you can!
to Ahmed, Egyptian, living in Canada, can't wait to go home
Ahmed, if you do NOT translate a bit of this, I will hunt you down and beat you purple! No, no, no. but I'm so frustrated. I saw 2 things that scared me: 1 Israeli flag pic with what looks like one of those shoulder rockets firing on it and a map of Israel with expanded borders??? PLEASE tell me this is a pro-democracy demonstration FOR Saudi Arabia and not some vendetta move on Israel! if it's the latter, we'll have world war three. and game over. ----------------------------------------------------------------
ok, "thugs lechery" is a little scary, because I'm wondering how much more sexually repressed Saudis could possibly be before their heads explode. So, I will try to think good thoughts that this just means corrupt people without morals.
Now,... what I really wanted to know, and it MAY be real, because I see the phrase in there, "men AND WOMEN" of revolution.
I'm SOO keeping my fingers crossed that, whatever happens with these young people who are tired of waiting for it to fall out of the sky, that we're talking gender equality here.
And I guess I have to find that google translator thingy. I didn't know it existed.
But, am I kind of understanding this now???
Saudi Arabia March 20th. Be there if you can!
to Ahmed, Egyptian, living in Canada, can't wait to go home
Ahmed, if you do NOT translate a bit of this, I will hunt you down and beat you purple! No, no, no. but I'm so frustrated. I saw 2 things that scared me: 1 Israeli flag pic with what looks like one of those shoulder rockets firing on it and a map of Israel with expanded borders??? PLEASE tell me this is a pro-democracy demonstration FOR Saudi Arabia and not some vendetta move on Israel! if it's the latter, we'll have world war three. and game over. ----------------------------------------------------------------
ok, "thugs lechery" is a little scary, because I'm wondering how much more sexually repressed Saudis could possibly be before their heads explode. So, I will try to think good thoughts that this just means corrupt people without morals.
Now,... what I really wanted to know, and it MAY be real, because I see the phrase in there, "men AND WOMEN" of revolution.
I'm SOO keeping my fingers crossed that, whatever happens with these young people who are tired of waiting for it to fall out of the sky, that we're talking gender equality here.
And I guess I have to find that google translator thingy. I didn't know it existed.
But, am I kind of understanding this now???
---------------------------------------------------
I'm crying so hard I can't see what I'm typing. must send this on to my old women's studies professor. this is a dream
I'm crying so hard I can't see what I'm typing. must send this on to my old women's studies professor. this is a dream
--------------------------------
to Kate, the women studies' professor
ok, maybe you will .... believe this.
March 20th. Non-violent pro-democracy demonstrations called to liberate Saudi Arabia.
My buddy from Egypt just found English language translation of the demands:
these are the Saudi protesters demands so far:
quote
The People want to Reform the Government Campaign
To support the right of the Saudi people and their legitimate aspirations:
1 – a constitutional monarchy between the king and government.
...2 – a written constitution approved by the people in which governing powers will be determined.
3 – transparency, accountability in fighting corruption
4 – the Government in the service of the people
5 – legislative elections.
6 – public freedoms and respect for human rights
7 – allowing civil society institutions
8 – full citizenship and the abolition of all forms of discrimination.
9 – Adoption of the rights of women and non-discrimination against them.
10 – an independent and fair judiciary.
11 – impartial development and equitable distribution of wealth.
12 – to seriously address the problem of unemployment
end quote
Because of al Qaida's drain on sympathy with and patience for Sharia law, the young people of SA have no interest in it. They want democracy and civil rights, freedom of speech and government accountability. Yeah: secularized SA governance. Yeah, that.
NOTHING about this has hit any major news outlets yet. It's all Saudis and Arabic speakers, discussing it in blogs, and at social network sites.
Kate, I think you're going to get a nice surprise. I think something I never would have dreamed possible is about to happen in Saudi Arabia.
would you like me to keep you posted?
I'm thinking I might be very busy for the next month! YAY You can tell anybody you wish about this. it's not a secret. It's a paradigm shift.
Y'know what? I think the planet may survive!
March 20th. Non-violent pro-democracy demonstrations called to liberate Saudi Arabia.
My buddy from Egypt just found English language translation of the demands:
these are the Saudi protesters demands so far:
quote
The People want to Reform the Government Campaign
To support the right of the Saudi people and their legitimate aspirations:
1 – a constitutional monarchy between the king and government.
...2 – a written constitution approved by the people in which governing powers will be determined.
3 – transparency, accountability in fighting corruption
4 – the Government in the service of the people
5 – legislative elections.
6 – public freedoms and respect for human rights
7 – allowing civil society institutions
8 – full citizenship and the abolition of all forms of discrimination.
9 – Adoption of the rights of women and non-discrimination against them.
10 – an independent and fair judiciary.
11 – impartial development and equitable distribution of wealth.
12 – to seriously address the problem of unemployment
end quote
Because of al Qaida's drain on sympathy with and patience for Sharia law, the young people of SA have no interest in it. They want democracy and civil rights, freedom of speech and government accountability. Yeah: secularized SA governance. Yeah, that.
NOTHING about this has hit any major news outlets yet. It's all Saudis and Arabic speakers, discussing it in blogs, and at social network sites.
Kate, I think you're going to get a nice surprise. I think something I never would have dreamed possible is about to happen in Saudi Arabia.
would you like me to keep you posted?
I'm thinking I might be very busy for the next month! YAY You can tell anybody you wish about this. it's not a secret. It's a paradigm shift.
Y'know what? I think the planet may survive!
-----------------------------------------------------
to Ahmed
I'm 55 years old. I never thought I'd see these things. Now, believe me, Obama is not my favorite person right now. but my dog, HUGE populations of folks who'd never voted before registered to vote for him: Blacks, poor, young . . . i never... ever thought I'd see a dark skinned President of the USA with a NON EUROPEAN NAME. The first summer after he was elected, I got this fluke scholarship to attend a conference in washington dc. Mind you, I live in serious poverty, three thousand miles away, never been there before, all expenses paid. WEEKS before I went, I planned to sneak away on the last day, find the Lincoln Memorial and stand on those steps where Dr. King had stood, and Marian Anderson ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wi
The Roosevelts, with Walter White, then-executive secretary of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, and Anderson's manager, impresario Sol Hurok, then persuaded Secretary of the Interior Harold L. Ickes to arrange an open air Marian Anderson concert on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial.[8] The concert was performed on Easter Sunday, April 9, and Anderson was accompanied, per usual, by Vehanen. They began the performance with a dignified and stirring rendition of "My Country, 'Tis of Thee". The event attracted a crowd of more than 75,000 of all colors and was a sensation with a national radio audience of millions.[10]
And, from where I stood, through the trees and marble buildings, 3 blocks away, I could see the White House, with Obama inside... not cleaning, cooking, building or serving something, but LEADING the wealthiest nation on Earth!
I remember the night Obama won. I saw videos from around the planet of people celebrating that MAYBE America was FINALLY getting her spit together and changing.
And Ahmed, I remember Egyptians, dancing and jumping and laughing and waving Obama shirts and just so tickled.
I remember that! And I think you believed it could happen, right from that moment, in your country. And then it spread.
And now, I'm having hope and believing in change again.
WE ARE THE CHANGE WE'VE BEEN LOOKING FOR
The Roosevelts, with Walter White, then-executive secretary of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, and Anderson's manager, impresario Sol Hurok, then persuaded Secretary of the Interior Harold L. Ickes to arrange an open air Marian Anderson concert on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial.[8] The concert was performed on Easter Sunday, April 9, and Anderson was accompanied, per usual, by Vehanen. They began the performance with a dignified and stirring rendition of "My Country, 'Tis of Thee". The event attracted a crowd of more than 75,000 of all colors and was a sensation with a national radio audience of millions.[10]
And, from where I stood, through the trees and marble buildings, 3 blocks away, I could see the White House, with Obama inside... not cleaning, cooking, building or serving something, but LEADING the wealthiest nation on Earth!
I remember the night Obama won. I saw videos from around the planet of people celebrating that MAYBE America was FINALLY getting her spit together and changing.
And Ahmed, I remember Egyptians, dancing and jumping and laughing and waving Obama shirts and just so tickled.
I remember that! And I think you believed it could happen, right from that moment, in your country. And then it spread.
And now, I'm having hope and believing in change again.
WE ARE THE CHANGE WE'VE BEEN LOOKING FOR
------------------------
To Renaldo, a Gay Navajo friend
guess what? you're never going to believe this. Saudi Arabia has scheduled a pro-democracy demonstration for revolution! They want civil rights for all, including women. I haven't asked about queer people yet; they don't know me very well. ...They want government reform, free speech, transparency. They're not a bit interested in Sharia law.March 20th. Vernal Equinox. My wedding anniversary and the day my daughter should have been born. Spring. Saudi Arabia! can you IMAGINE????
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